whyworrycafoss

Industrial farming has boomed in recent years due to mass production efforts and has brought on a wave of environmental problems. The idea of a CAFO, in essence, is to mimic a “factory.” The purpose is to produce more meat on less land at a lower price; however, the true costs are placed on and environmental health. More animals are now being raised on less land than before, and they are being crammed into huge buildings or feeding operations with no access to fresh air. Animals are usually separated from their mothers one or two days after birth and are subjected to painful procedures without anesthesia. Also, water and fossil fuels are consumed in large quantities to run the operation and transport the meat all over the nation. The number of CAFOs has increased significantly in the last decade. There was a 10 year period in California, where the “number of animals per CAFO operation rose by 200%”.

Impacts on Human and Environmental Health

Industrial farming is inherently unsustainable. It causes pollution in waterways, allows larger corporations to ship their meat to far locations, and may also cause disease among the human population. CAFOs are a major source of pollution in both air and water. Particulate matter (like dust, etc) and hydrogen sulfide is known to cause human respiratory problems. Also, excessive nutrients may build up in waterways from lagoon spills, causing toxic algal blooms and depleting oxygen levels for fish. Manure lagoons both pollute ground water and deplete it. Ruptured lagoons can cause massive fish kills and arsenic (used in chicken feed) is a known toxin that can cause blood vessel damage. Antibiotics used by farmers are known to cause the growth of disease-resistant bacteria which are hard to treat in both animals and people. CAFOs are being held responsible for the spread of swine flu. Pigs are fed massive amounts of antibiotics to keep them alive, yet “hundreds of thousands are vulnerable to the stress of violent mutations and intensive confinement". CAFOs breed pathogens and “centralized distribution helps spread them”. For example, the deadly E. coli bacteria that sickened 47 McDonald’s customers came from CAFO practices. E. coli is not just found in meat, but also in vegetables and even cookie dough. The product that is sold as meat to consumers also has health implications such as "colon, breast, and prostate cancer, and type II diabetes".

Possible Solutions

If the problem of CAFOs is not addressed, the ecological and health impacts would continue and this method of unsustainable agriculture will remain intact.